How can my simulation be a real love?

"Since you're all friends from the same village, why don't you stay for a meal? I'll be preparing sushi and pizza later, so just tell me what you'd like to eat?"

Kazami Naruto, who was originally planning to refuse, raised an eyebrow.

Looks like I'll have no choice but to eat it now.

2

Chapter Two: Music Festival

Pfft!

The aluminum can of soda was pulled open, and the unique bubbling sound of carbonation made a tingling sensation all over the body. Kazami Mei kept chugging the original black-skinned Monster soda into her mouth.

The intense carbonation rushes straight to the top of your head, bombarding your stomach with a unique and irresistible sensation.

"I want to drink soda for the rest of my life."

Kazami Naruto, who had finished eating and returned to Pochi's room, had a hint of seriousness flash in his elegant black eyes.

A solemn and mission-driven expression appeared on his face, as if he were talking about something of great importance that could affect one's life.

It has to be said that the food cooked by Boqi's family is quite delicious. In addition, Boqi's parents are very enthusiastic. They not only cooked delicious dishes by themselves, but also prepared takeout pizza and fried chicken for young people like Kazami Mei who like to eat junk food. They even thoughtfully prepared Monster Energy carbonated drinks.

Although my uncle and aunt already have two daughters, I don't know if they need a son.

"Poch-chan, your family atmosphere seems so warm~"

With a hint of envy in her voice, Kita Ikuyo couldn't help but look up at the pink-haired girl beside her. Upon hearing this, Pochi's face instantly stiffened, his whole body as stiff as a robot stuck in a gear.

That's true, Mom and Dad were being a little too enthusiastic.

The couple were especially curious about Kazami Naruto, who was visiting their home for the first time. They wanted to get to the bottom of everything about him, from his academic performance to his interpersonal relationships and even his food preferences...

When asked about the last couple, Kazami-kun's eyes seemed to be flashing with a green light.

Not only does she live alone in Tokyo, but she also has to work part-time to support her tuition and living expenses. In addition to being a skilled cook, she also has time to play in a band.

This outstanding young man also has an incredibly handsome face!

The Goto couple were understandably shocked.

After all, in the eyes of the couple, their daughter, who had a very withdrawn personality, had never made any friends since she was a child. The fact that she could now associate with a few female friends who played in a band together was already quite remarkable!

Who would have thought that such an aloof Ms. Goto would actually be able to make such an outstanding male friend as Kazami Mei?

It sounds as absurd as Gatanothor being the hero who saves the world!

The couple, who had already resigned themselves to their daughter remaining single for life, found their hopes rekindled.

"It's rather cold. You're way too late, aren't you?"

Ijichi Nijika couldn't help but look at the tall, blue-haired girl beside her. At that moment, Ms. Yamada was covering her slightly protruding belly with a satisfied expression.

She hadn't been able to reach the meeting point, but somehow she arrived just as she smelled the food during lunchtime, her timing so precise it was as if she had deliberately waited outside for the meal to start.

"Sobbing... because my grandma's dog, 'Bess,' was hit and killed by a truck loaded with Okamoto 001s..."

"Its life was at a critical moment, which is why I arrived a little late."

Miss Yamada actually took out eye drops and put them in twice in front of everyone, and then started to sob quietly in a very lifelike manner.

Even Kita Ikuyo no longer believes the reasons she makes up casually, let alone Ichi Nijika, who has known her since childhood.

"Why Okamoto of all people? Are you discriminating against Durex?"

Holding the demon claw in his hand, Kazami Naru casually made a sarcastic remark with a blank expression.

To everyone's surprise, upon hearing this, Ms. Yamada immediately stopped faking her tears and instead carefully examined Kazami Naruto with her elegant, golden eyes. A meaningful smile gradually appeared on her stunningly beautiful face.

Even though Ms. Yamada didn't actually say anything, Kazami Mei inexplicably felt that she was being provoked.

It feels like it's already getting hot. I think Miss Liang is simply courting death!

If he ever gets the chance, he'll make that arrogant and domineering thief, Miss Liang, kneel down and beg for mercy!

"Really——"

"What weird topic are you two talking about?! The important thing right now is to discuss the band's upcoming live performance, isn't it?!"

Seeing the two people in front of her suddenly talking about topics that are not suitable for children, Ichiji Nijika, who is naturally shy, quickly started waving her little hands.

Her words, a mixture of shame and indignation, were accompanied by the girl's youthful and shy beauty. Her trembling eyelashes and her ears, completely stained red, seemed to reveal her panic.

If this continues, the band might end up becoming some kind of shady band!

"Is it about the fireworks festival live? Nijika already told me about it yesterday."

Ms. Yamada's condition improved in just a short moment.

She raised her eyes to look in Hongxia's direction, then focused her gaze on Fengjianming's face. Her beautiful, expressionless face made it impossible to tell what she was thinking.

"There are less than fifteen days left before I have to go on stage. Will I need to play a new piece then?"

The girl's calm words made the people present begin to hesitate.

Putting aside the fact that the preparation time for this live performance was indeed a bit short, if they were to perform a 'new song' on stage, it would mean that Kazami Naruto and Yamada Ryo would have to create a new song within that timeframe. Keep in mind that the pressure of everyone's training alone was already considerable.

"I think the previous piece was quite suitable, so there's no need to prepare a new one for now, right?"

"I agree with Hongxia's opinion!"

Even Pochi, who usually doesn't like to express his opinions, couldn't help but speak up this time.

As the "Guitar Hero," Boqi was the most talented and skilled member of the band. Even though Kazami Naruto's new song was only written the night before the performance, Boqi was able to memorize the score and play it fluently in that short time.

However, this does not mean that others can do it too.

For example, Kita-san, who recently confused the bass with the guitar, has been working hard to practice her guitar skills this summer. However, Kita-san's experience and talent are not as good as Pochi's. It is quite difficult for her to master a new song in just fifteen days.

Not to mention, it takes time to write a new song.

"In that case, let's play the original piece we just composed."

After weighing the pros and cons, Kazami Mei ultimately decided to give up playing the new piece.

Even if he could pull out a simulated original song from his crotch right now, it doesn't mean that everyone can master the song within this timeframe.

To be on the safe side, it would be best to perform the previous original pieces perfectly.

"However, this is also a good opportunity."

The moment the words left his mouth, the girls around him all showed a hint of confusion.

"The band has only had one debut live performance with a limited audience at 'STARRY' so far, and even though the performance was quite good... we are still just a new band."

"This Summer Fireworks Festival Live stage has attracted many fans who came specifically for it, which is obviously a great promotional opportunity. If we perform well, we can gain traffic online!"

“After that, we may have the opportunity to participate in larger music festivals.”

Since acquiring the 'Operations and Management Lv.2' skill in Miss Suze's simulation, Kazami Naruto has gained more knowledge about music operations, especially since he also learned some very important information through this simulation.

Tokyo Music Festival!

In the simulation, Mygo was able to get onto that stage only because of popularity, but the current End Band is clearly not good enough yet.

The newly debuted band, End, can hardly attract traffic by relying solely on the account management of "Social Network Minister" Kita Ikuyo. To gain attention and popularity, they need to constantly appear at live performances.

"Music festival...?"

Kita Ikuyo's eyes widened in surprise; such words were indeed somewhat unfamiliar to them.

Ichi Nijika, who owns a LiveHouse at home, certainly understands the value of a 'music festival'.

Large-scale music festivals mean that some very strong professional bands will be performing on the same stage, which places high demands on the bands' performance skills. However, it also represents huge audiences and opportunities.

Bands that perform exceptionally well at major music festivals are almost guaranteed to be approached by artist management agencies or record companies.

"Ming-san, does this mean you're going to 'debut'?"

Hongxia's mother hesitated for a moment before speaking cautiously.

When the word "debut" was mentioned, the girls clearly showed some excitement.

Pochi, who longed to stand on the big stage, was already lost in thought. Yamada Ryo was just pondering with his head down. Only Kita-san's smile became a little stiff.

"Wow, it suddenly feels like the end of the band is so far away—"

Kita Ikuyo's words, drifting over softly, resonated with those present.

Debuting means being able to sell CDs and albums, concert tickets and various merchandise will start to increase in price significantly, and you can even see the words "End Band" in various music magazines and other places.

They can even hold hands and climb up to their dream dojo together...

"If we perform at a music festival, we can compete with bands like Afterglow, right?"

Like a primary school student being called on by the teacher, Yamada Ryo still raised his left hand to ask the question with a blank expression.

Her casual words immediately froze Nijika and Kita's faces. The two girls, who had been having beautiful fantasies about the future, were instantly terrified after hearing these words.

After all, Afterglow is a truly professional and popular band!

I typed Afterglow? Really?

"You don't need to think that far ahead right now; we're still a long way from that point."

Kazami Mei looked at Nijika and Kita, who were starting to lose their minds, with a helpless expression, and couldn't help but make a comment.

Then he reached out and gently pinched Pochi's soft, bouncy cheeks, trying to pull her back to reality from her dream world, but he couldn't bring her back even after pinching for a long time.

"Haha~ Ming is right... After all, it's still a long way from when we're here!"

"Yeah, yeah! It's making me nervous too!"

Upon hearing Kazami Naru's words, Nijika's mother and Kita-san immediately snapped out of their daze and put on bright smiles, trying to brush it off with cheerfulness.

The two changed so much in such a short time that even Kazami Mei didn't know how to comment.

"If this fireworks festival live goes well, then it's only a matter of time before we have to compete with bands like Afterglow."

That one sentence made the two girls feel uneasy again.

Kazami Mei doesn't know if the grown-up Ending Band will compete with Afterglow, but if he follows his path, there's a high chance they'll compete with the similarly grown Mygo at music festivals.

He really couldn't say what would happen then—

However, he was aware that ending the band had great potential.

If Boqi can overcome his social anxiety and inconsistent performance at this moment, he could debut directly as a professional-level lead guitarist and become a super master. Liang, who has been playing bass since childhood, also has great talent. As long as she trains well, her future achievements are unlikely to be bad.

Nijika's talent is slightly mediocre compared to the other two, but after her last debut live, Kazami Mei noticed that Nijika's progress speed suddenly became unusually fast, showing strong potential, just like Kita-san, who has excellent singing skills.

Clearly, everyone has considerable hidden potential.

"In short, let's do our best at this fireworks festival live."

After saying this, Kazami Mei breathed a slight sigh of relief. He looked at the girls in front of him with a clear hint of doubt on his face.

No, why are they all staring at him?

Although I know that everyone is more or less unable to resist his powerful charm, I still feel a little uncomfortable staring at Kazami Naruto like this.

"Ask a question!"

Kita Ikuyo suddenly raised her little hand, her face now serious, despite her usual sunny and lively personality.

"Kita, please speak!"

What will happen to our stage costumes for this live performance?

Upon hearing this question, Kazami Mei gasped and abruptly turned to look at Nijika's mother beside him.

Last time, no one could come up with a performance outfit until the start of their debut live, so they simply used the concept that Nijika Ijichi had initially come up with: the 'End Band Logo'.

But this is a fireworks festival live, so everyone can't just wear shirts, right?

Speaking of the band members who ended their careers, although they all had good taste in clothing, they were completely clueless about designing clothes. And if they were to hire a professional to design clothes, they simply didn't have the budget.

There is no other way——

“I have a friend who is quite good at this, and I will try to ask her for help.”

A pink silhouette gradually formed in Kazami Naruto's mind. Miss Aine really had a remarkable talent for designing clothes. If she really became a chief fashion designer, she might actually be able to open a company like ANONTOKYO.

Ms. Aine would probably not refuse to help, but she would definitely take this opportunity to get him to sign something like an "unequal treaty".

"In short, everyone should focus on training for now."